Spartacus: War of the Damned

[Dave (imported)]

Episode 3...

Spartacus has conquered a city and now is faced with feeding the city and patroling his men.

And then the ships arrive with sleazy and corrupt pirates.

Then the ship mounted ballistas are used -- YAY, flaming balls of fire again...

The episode is titled "Men of Honor" and honor is on the line on many accounts.

Also, lots of "F" bombs, lots of "F"ing too...

[Dave (imported)]

Episode 4 "Decimation" introduced the real character development of Marcus Crassus's son - Tiberius Crassus.

In episode 5 "Blood Brothers" the kid develops balls and understanding of what is involved in being a man in war.

One of the best things about this series has been that no opponent is stupid. The gladiators - Spartacus, Gannicus, Crixsus, the Batiatus Clan (all of those schemers not only John Hanna but Lucy Lawless and what's her name who played Illythia and the first roman general's lover who got her throat slit by Illythia) and now Marcus Crassus as the Roman general who beats him

all of those characters were brilliant and brainy and scheming. None of them were stupid monologists or evil megalomaniacs.

I thought parts of "Decimation" were less good than other segments of the show but this episode and the ones that follow will be a payoff of spectacular proportions.

[Dave (imported)]

Episode six

Was far more satisfying than a couple previous episodes in that the Roman general Crassus and his Son TIberius are at odds with each other thanks to Crassus being rather stupid about how to treat his men and especially his son.

Gannicus shines in this episode.

Julius Caesar trims his unkempt hair and now looks like a Roman general. He was cute and adorable with a shaggy head of hair now he is just another hard-edged Roman.

And where does the episode end?

In history of course -- on a snow covered plain with Spartacus back up against a ditch with a wall cutting off his means of escape.

[Dave (imported)]

Episode 7: Mors Indecepta

A tiny lesson in Latin is necessary -- Mors is latin for "death" and in ancient Rome Mors was literally what we call the Grim Reaper - death incarnate.

indecepta is an obscure verb. A real pain in the ass to translate. "Death is not deceived" is about right.

The rebel slaves are freezing on the plain, the retreat is stopped by a wall and ditch that is guarded by a bunch of Roman Soldiers,

and Crassus and the Roman army is advancing from the other side. Things are bad for Spartacus. Trapped like a rat in Crassus's trap

But fear not -- Crassus's son TIberius is still a little shit, a true spoiled brat and is restored to command, obviously. Julius Caesar is an obnoxious womanizing boor, Crassus's main squeeze (a slave girl) doesn't want to be raped (again) by Tiberius even though he's hung like a horse and just as stupid as it's backside. Ganniccus the Blond gladiator gives into to survival in the arms, breasts and body of a beautiful girl who is not his main squeeze...

Crixus the gladiator wants to attack head on and butts heads with Spartacus. Manu Bennet and Liam McIntrye are spectacular

In the end, the bridge is one of the most morbid sights ever put on screen...

Remember that Roman god MORS? --- that's the latin root of the word Morbid.

[Dave (imported)]

Episode Eight -- "Separate Paths"

I hope you all realize that the history books stand as the ultimate spoiler of this story.

However, the writers of STARZ Spartacus wrote a story into that history that has surprised and delighted with gore, blood, and the wages of slavery and dominion.

The story is told in alternately very personal terms and in in broad strokes of historical significance.

Spartacus and Crixus both the gods of the arena part ways.

Julius Caesar gets it, up his (why's he walking so funny?)

Tiberius being a slimy dirtbag, slimes his way through the episode...

and

what is the ultimate spoiler - History - well history records that the Third Servile War came close to Rome with the rebels blazing a bloody path down the Appian way.

The final battle sequences last 15 minutes and are spectacular.

And as all rebellions end, so does this episode end with the blood of heroes...

Two more episodes after this.

[Riverwind (imported)]

My goodness this is taking longer then the Titanic took to sink.

River

[Dave (imported)]

But the drama is better written than the last attempt at "Titanic" fictionalization.

[Dave (imported)]

My goodness this is taking longer then the Titanic took to sink.

River

I was thinking about that.

Season 1 Blood and Sand -- was all about Spartacus (Andy Whitfield) getting captured by Roman Praeter Glaber, turned into a gladiator, and beating Crixus, the current champion. It ends with the rebellion and the bloodbath in the House of Batiatus. . . Much of the tale was fictionalized to match the outlines of history but no one really know if Batiatus and his wife Lucretia (Lucy Lawless and the best breasts on Cable) actually existed as sexy and as wildly bloody as they were portrayed.

Then Andy Whitfield got sick.

Season 2 was delayed and production shutdown they thought for his cure but unfortunately the cancer was worse than anyone expected.

While they waited for Andy Whitfield to recover, they wrote the story of the before time... season 1/2 titled Gods of the Arena in which tells the story of how Batiatus took control of the Ludus and how Crixus beat Gannicus and became a famous gladiator.

So season 2 comes along with Vengeance and Spartacus fights Praeter Glaber and wins. Spartacus has his vengeances on those who enslaved him and killed his wife. This is the rebellion when Spartacus is beating Rome. So far, the actual history and the story history coincide. With the exceptions of the looks of the real people and creepy baby plot and that bloody wench with the knife.

Season 3 -- War of the Damned is the last act.

History records that Spartacus and the slave rebellion did take a City from the Romans. Spartacus was cornered on the plains of whatever with a wall built to prevent his escape. However, history also records that FIRST, Marcus Licinius Crassus the richest and most powerful man in Rome was given an army to chase down Spartacus and when he didn't get the job done, other roman armies under Julius Caesar and Pompey came out with bigger armies.

Now I point to history and that Crassus, Julius Caesar, and Pompey were the First Triumvirate of the Roman Empire.

History says Spartacus dies in the next big battle and so he will.

However, for this story, A little slimy twerp named Tiberius (the spoiled brat) has buggered Julius Caesar and he ain't going to get away with that. This might have lots of fucking, sucking, killing, naked people, and all sorts of atrocities but ain't no way no one gets away with buggering Julius Caesar.

[Dave (imported)]

The critics (the whole lot, in fact all of them I read) wondered why Spartacus as a show had two Fridays when three episodes were repeated from the previous weeks. And if they looked at a calendar or even thought about celebrating holidays they would have figured it out. Damn heathens! wink, wink...

STARZ made sure that their schedule missed Good Friday, Easter and Passover.

History records that 5000 rebel slaves were crucified at the end of the Third Servile War.

This much is sure: Spartacus will be are the bloodiest show on TV.

THE WALKING DEAD is a good second for most bloody show. It maybe tops of everything else this season. It depends on the finale of GAME OF THRONES which I don't watch. But Spartacus will have that historical bloodbath and there's not much that can match history.

Real history beats fiction every day of the week and twice on Saturday and Sunday.

[Dave (imported)]

And the end draws near.

this was the penultimate episode.

One episode after this left to history.

This episode is a heartbreaker, more a love story with gladiatorial battles. More the glory and wonder of freedom than the glory of the arena.

You see, for all their savagery and violence and blood, the gladiator matches were things of beauty. Blood sport to be sure but still works of art. The Romans got brutality and the games that the crowds wanted... Blood Sport. They took fighting to its peak and as the title of the first season "Blood and Sand" meant glory and freedom, redemption for the damned. All to maintain slavery and build an empire.

But once the slaves rebelled, there was only the God of War and his camp-follower-whore Death.

There is one fate left to the end and that is Spartacus.